Amor Towles, A GENTLEMAN IN MOSCOW

GENTLEMAN truly is one of my favorites (as in it makes my list of the top 20 books I've ever read). The premise is unusual ... a man sentenced to a life of house arrest in a hotel in Moscow. But it is what he makes of his life that is so marvelous. It feels like an old-fashioned novel in a way: immensely readable, with clever little bits dropped in for humor amidst the chaos and trouble, wonderful characters, and a deeply satisfying ending.

Taking things out of context never puts them in their best light—but there are so many passages I underlined in this book that I want to share one. Emile is the temperamental gourmet chef who is famous for driving inept underlings out of the kitchen at the point of a knife. He and the Count (protagonist) and another friend have just been threatened with being turned over to the State by an obnoxious, rigid bureaucrat, whom they all hate. He has just left the kitchen, hurriedly.

“Andrey and the count turned their gaze from the door to Emile. Then in wide-eyed amazement, Andrey pointed a delicate finger at Emile’s raised hand. For in the heat of outrage, the chef had grabbed not his chopper but a celery stalk, whose little green fronds now trembled in the air. And to a man, the Triumvirate burst into laughter.”

I'd say, Don't miss this gem.